Experience Dubai

It was Friday night in Dubai when Onn and I decided to visit the renowned Gold Souk (Souk: a traditional market) and experience the Dhow dinner cruise which brought us cruising along the beautiful, serene creek.

The creek is indeed a wonderful sight, especially at night.

Now, while others might give you a taste of sweet experience first, I'm going to feed you the sour side of my experience.

What I'm about to highlight here is a lesson you HAVE to learn when you're on a trip in Dubai. It can be scary to travel in a big city. Trust me.

So, RENT a car.

Yes, you're now thinking, "Hey, there are cabs everywhere! It's a metropolis."

Gosh, you're so wrong. You're right if you're out there on the weekdays before sunset. Don't be fooled.

The problem will only present itself when night falls and sometimes, even during the day!

So, we finished strolling along the creek and the Gold souk at around 9.30pm (Dubai time). We didn't want to stay there longer as we were afraid we might not be able to catch a cab back to our hotel.

Unfortunately, our fear manifested.

By car, we could reach our hotel in 15-20 mins.

That night, we ended up going back to our hotel in 2 whole hours on foot, with only brief seconds of rests. It was the longest two hours in my life!

Not only did the people cut queues, cab drivers were extremely selective! They only agreed to take passengers going to the direction they had planned or wished to go.

That was 'the' moment when I felt like going on a rampage. The rage was neck high.

Note that Dubai has no well-planned transportation system despite being the fastest growing city.

Along the way, we tried to hail cabs. We stopped several times hoping to get a cab to drive us back since we were already very exhausted, but to no avail. In the end, we had no choice. We walked back to our hotel and finally reached at 1.30 in the morning.

When we were approaching our hotel, I was like "Ahhh...,Finally!" I managed to give a faint smile to Onn. We were so glad to have reached, but at the same time, we were totally fatigued. My legs ached and I could barely speak.

Without that experience, we wouldn't know that Dubai's a very safe city! Or, could it be we were just plain lucky to have not bumped into any bad guys?

I was telling Onn about this and I told him, "If it wasn't for those taxi drivers, I wouldn't have known the level of my endurance and it wasn't so bad after all because I have you to accompany me, not anyone else."

Jakarta-Bandung

                                                                     (pic: Sweet desserts at Tanah Abang food court)

Talking about Indonesia, Bali and Yogyarkarta might be two of the most interesting and beautiful places you can think of. Jakarta, on the other hand, is not a place that would come across your mind easily, if you’re a tourist.

Unless you’re a party animal or a boring tourist, Jakarta is truly a bad choice for holidaymakers.

Hi-Lites

OK, maybe it’s not as lousy as I’ve stated.

There are still some pretty interesting stuffs that you can find in Jakarta, like the three-wheeled, two-seater vehicle (dubbed the ‘bajaj’) that chokes out dark mini clouds of fumes terrorising the streets with its noisy engine.

                                                (pic: Jakarta is really a bustling and chaotic city)

The sight of hundreds of locals grouping at the entrance of Tanah Abang mall, mostly waiting for their friends or family members to finish their shopping spree, was simply mind-blowing.

And locals taking a walk or playing football in the middle of the road (the police blocked the roads so that citizens can have leisure activities there - what privilege!).

‘Round We Go - No trains??

Getting around the metropolis is slightly tougher than any other cities like KL, due to its poor transportation system. They do have taxis in all corners. ‘Bajaj’ can be found in the city vicinity - they don’t travel far tho’.

Buses are everywhere. But they do have a slightly better bus system - Busway - where one lane of the road is dedicated specially for its buses (cost 35.000Rupiah/ person for all stops).

Something is missing in the picture tho’ - trains. Where are they? We have LRTs in KL, MRTs in our neighbouring country, Spore, MTRs in HK and Subways in NYC.

So, is there a rationale behind the absence of trains in this metropolis?

According to a friend who got this from a local taxi driver, that, if there’s a train system in Jakarta, it’ll lead to the reduction of buses and taxis, which means the increase of unemployment.

                                                               (pic: Proton, one of the Best Cars in 2008? Seriously? )

When more people are jobless, what’s going to happen? Bingo! The crime rate will escalate. The government’s main concern - sustaining social stability. And, they’re doing just that.

The High Low

Since the labour in Jakarta is surprisingly cheap, having a driver of your own and a few maids is a common sight.

If you’re rich, you can enjoy extreme luxury in Jakarta than any other places you’re in.

                                (pic: A dilapidated shack bearing Coca-Cola signs in the town of Jakarta)

While waiting for my friend’s friends (who came with a driver in an Innova) to come pick us up at the lobby, we saw a man (in his 30s) got down from his car, carrying his baby, and together with him were his maid and his caddie (as presumed by my friend).

He’s got his own driver too.

Luxury doesn’t have to come with age. It’s never too young to experience a luxurious life in Jakarta.

It’s true. I’ve seen young housewives with at least one maid with them in shopping malls. While they were busy getting new clothes for their wardrobe(s), the maids were busy taking care of the babies.

What lucky mothers!

Oh, one more fact for you - Girls marry young in Jakarta. Therefore, it’s not surprising to see young mothers in clubs and discos, partying all night thru’.

So Boys, don’t be dumbfounded if you find yourself surrounded by kids the next morning! (info from a friend who’s working in Jakarta)

The Down Low

“While the rich is getting richer, the poor is getting poorer,” replied a taxi driver when I asked him about the gap of the society classes: borned-rich class, working class, just-enough-to-survive-another-day class.

                                                             (pic: Lush paddy fields growing under the railway track)

Yea, it’s a cliche. We hear this everywhere, mainly in developing countries. People are suffering.

What I’ve seen in Thailand is similar in Jakarta-Bandung. Small kids gently knock on your car window and point to the items they’re selling, sometimes, begging you to buy something from them, in the streets.

Young men play their guitars and sing nice tunes right at your car window, when they’re supposed to be working in offices. I saw a shameless aqua dressed in pink with heavy make-up on, making girly gestures right in front of my tour van.

What does the future hold for these people? Really.

It’s really chaotic to see people walking in the streets, showing no concerns for their safety. Motorcycles zooming past every second. Notorious traffic jams. Car drivers driving recklessly, stopping anywhere they like.

The metropolis is insanely-overpopulated and the government’s not doing a very good job in giving what’s best for its citizens who’re working their asses off to make ends meet.

Huh? What talking you?

No, I haven’t lost my sense of speech. I’m talking about Indonesians and their passion for their language - Bahasa Indonesia. English, as proclaimed by my tour guide, is like ‘ghost’ to them.

                                          (pic: Pizza Hut delivery machines lining up in front of the fast food chain)

They don’t use foreign language in their daily conversation; many do not use it in months or even in years. They understand each other very well in B.I.

A girl, who's a friend of my friend, who only speaks Hokkien and B.I. (not Bahasa Inggeris, mind you) told us about her lone-trekking expedition to a foreign land - S’pore.

She has travelled to all places in Indo and some parts of M’sia too. One time, she was in S’pore and was enjoying the time she had on a sandy beach when she realised all buses had stopped their services.

That left her with no choice but to ask around how she could get back to her hotel.

She had to ask each person she met, in Hokkien, “Eh hiao gong hokkien bor?” Finally, a man who understood her drove her back.

“If I knew English or Mandarin, I would’ve had gone to China and Europe or somewhere farther,” she said in Hokkien (a language which I can understand fairly O.K.).

For the love of their language, they’ve abandoned the very important language that would get their messages across the globe - English.

That’s a really big mistake. It might be the root of their underdevelopment.

Shopping Haven - Bandung

No, no, no. ‘Shopping Haven’ is definitely not a phrase used solely by girls. Trust me.

I was there and I saw it all at the La Mode. Guys LOVE shopping too.

I was taken to Chilampelas the first time I was in Bandung. Chilampelas a.k.a the jeans street is a street full of street shops selling street T-shirts and jeans.

If you’re a fashion chic on a shoe-string budget, this is the place to get not-so-bad quality clothes.

Even if you’ve got a fat wallet, you might want to consider just walking along the street to see the efforts of each shop to be the most appealing one, in terms of signboard designs, etc., which can be quite enthralling.

The appealing side of this street is not the clothes that are exported out of the country, but the creative signage of each shop to attract patrons.

La Mode Outlet

Let’s get back to the La Mode, shall we? It was crowded! Damn crowded.

People kept swarming the place like there was Super Mega sales goin’ on. I was one of the drooling patrons too. Well, why wouldn’t we?

We could get MNG, AX, CK even LV at low prices or factory outlet prices. Bandung’s attraction - factory outlets! It’s insane. There are various outlets and one day’s just ain’t enough.

The prices are attractive, but you might be disappointed when you can’t find the right size or the perfect piece.

Some of the pieces might be torn or buttons missing or dyed in red. Oh, you know…all the rejected stuff. Still, you can get great bargains. There’s just something for everyone. ;)


Pricey Tour Package

The Indos laughed at me when they heard that my tour package included Chilampelas (not the outlets) and they laughed even louder when they found out that my Bandung trip cost USD95.

To think of my Bandung tour is really…Pissing Me Off. So much for so little.

Nonetheless, the sight of the enormous crater is just magnificent. It was breathtaking.

What I can tell you about my experience watching the crater?

“There’s nothing much.” Sometimes, it’s best not to expect too much. Just enjoy the scene.

Bandung shares resemblance with Bali - stunningly beautiful green paddy terraces. But what Bali doesn’t have that Bandung has are tea plantations that stretch across the hills of Bandung.

Bandung nestles at a higher altitude and therefore, the air is much clearer and fresher and cooler compared to Jakarta. It’s something like Genting Highland, only with not much entertainment.

Bandung - Yes. Jakarta - Depends on the purpose of your visit.